UC-NRLF 


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JAPANESE   LYRICS 


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^S?  ^4?  li? 


JAPANESE  LYRICS 

TRANSLATED    BY 

LAFCADIO  HEARN 


BOSTON  AND  NEW  YORK 

HOUGHTON  MIFFLIN  COMPANY 

dtie  Kiteri^ilie  ^it0  Cambribge 

^9^5 


COPYRIGHT,    1894   AND   1895,   BY  LAFCADIO   HEARl 

COPYRIGHT,    1896,    1897,    1904,   AND    1905,   BY   HOUGHTON,    MIFFLIN   &   COMPANY 

COPYRIGHT,    19x5,   BY   HOUGHTON   MIFFLIN   COMPANY 


ALL   RIGHTS   RESERVED 


Published  April  igij 


Seki  wa  yoi  toko, 
Asahi  wo  ukete ; 
O-Yama  arashlga 
Soyo-soyoto  ! 

Song  of  Mionoseki. 


[Seki  is  a  goodly  place ^  facing  the  morning  sun.  T'here,  from 
the  holy  mountains^  the  winds  blow  softly ^  softly^  —  soyo- 
soyoto.] 


PUBLISHERS'  NOTE 

Scattered  through  the  pages  of  Lafcadio  Mearri  s  writ' 
ings  are  many  'Japanese  lyrics.  So  graceful  are  these  little 
poems y  so  characteristic ,  in  their  swift ,  sure  impressionism^ 
of  Oriental  art,  that  it  has  seemed  worth  while  to  bring 
them  together  within  the  compass  of  a  single  volume. 

It  is  perhaps  unnecessary  to  analyze  here  the  distinctive 
features  of  Japanese  poetry.  The  reader  will  understand 
that  as  the  poets  relied  for  their  effect  largely  upon  the  oppor- 
tunities for  subtle  and  intricate  double  meanings  afforded  by 
the  peculiar  structure  of  the  Japanese  language ,  it  is  scarcely 
possible  to  do  them  justice  in  an  alien  tongue.  But  these 
translations,  though  faithful  to  the  original,  have  the  innate 
feeling  for  beauty,  the  instinctive  sense  of  the  right  word, 
the  perfect  phrase,  common  to  everything  that  came  from 
HearrHs  pen. 

To  preserve  the  volume  from  the  appearance  of  undue 
weightiness  the  interpretive  notes  with  which  the  poems  are 
accompanied  have  been  reduced  to  the  smallest  possible  com- 
pass. Indeed,  in  many  cases  the  elaborate  plays  upon  words 
are  too  involved  to  be  susceptible  of  explanation. 

In  their  limitation  of  a  poem  to  the  presentation  of  a 

[vii] 


PUBLISHERS'    NOTE 

single  impression  and  in  their  ability  to  present  that  impres- 
sion with  the  utmost  vividness  and  with  the  sternest  economy 
of  words y  these  ^Japanese  poets  are  strangely  akin  to  the 
Imagists,  the  youngest  of  the  modern  schools.  And  for 
this  reason  it  has  seemed  peculiarly  appropriate  that  their 
work  should  be  included  in  the  New  Poetry  Series. 


CONTENTS 

Insect  Poems  i 

Lullabies  and  Children's  Verse  ii 

Love  Songs  and  Lyrics  21 

Goblin  Poetry  29 

The  River  of  Heaven  55 

Notes  8i 


JAPANESE   LYRICS 
INSECT    POEMS 


.;J:APANESE    LYRICS 

Nugi-kakuru 

Haori  sugata  no 

Kocho  kana ! 

Torisashi  no 

Sao  no  jama  suru, 

Kocho  kana ! 

Tsurigane  ni 

Tomarite  nemuru 

Kocho  kana! 

to5 

Neru-uchi  mo 
Asobu-yume  wo  ya  — 
Kusa  no  cho! 

Oki,  oki  yo! 
Waga  tomo  ni  sen, 
Neru-kocho ! 

Kago  no  tori 
Cho  wo  urayamu 
Metsuki  kana! 

Cho  tonde  — 
Kaze  naki  hi  to  mo 
Miezari  ki! 

[  2  ] 


INSECT    POEMS 

Like  a  woman  slipping  off  her  haori"^  —  that 
is  the  appearance  of  a  butterfly. 


Ah,  the  butterfly  keeps  getting  in  the  way  of 
the  bird-catcher's  pole  I 


Perched  upon  the  temple-belly  the  butterfly 
sleeps: 


Even  while  sleeping,  its  dream  is  of  play 
ah,  the  butterfly  of  the  grass  I 


Wake  up !  wake  up!  —  /  will  make  thee  my 
comrade,  thou  sleeping  butterfly. 


Ah,  the  sad  expression  in  the  eyes  of  that  caged     i 
bird!  — envying  the  butterfly  ! 


Even  though  it  did  not  appear  to  be  a  windy 
day,  the  fluttering  of  the  butterflies  —  / 

[3] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Rakkwa  eda  ni 
Kaeru  to  mireba  — 
Kocho  kana! 

Chiru-hana  ni  — 
Karusa  arasoii 
Kocho  kana  ! 

Chocho  ya ! 
Onna  no  michi  no 
Ato  ya  saki! 

Chocho  ya! 
Hana-nusubito  wo 
Tsukete-yuku ! 

Aki  no  cho 
Tomo  nakereba  ya; 
Hito  ni  tsuku. 

Owarete  mo, 
Isoganu  furi  no 
Chocho  kana ! 

Ch5  wa  mina 
Jiu-shichi-hachi  no 
Sugata  kana! 

[4] 


INSECT    POEMS 

When  I  saw  the  fallen  flower  return  to  the 
branch — lo !  it  was  only  a  butterfly!^ 


How  the  butterfly  strives  to  compete  in  light- 
ness with  the  falling  flowers  I 


See  that  butterfly  on  the  woman!  s  path^  —  now 
fluttering  behind  her,  now  before  I 


Ha  I  the  butterfly  !  —  it  is  following  the  person      ^' 
who  stole  the  flowers  ! 

\  Poor  autumn  butterfly  I — when  left  without      "^ 

a  comrade,  it  follows  after  man  I 

\  Ah,  the  butterfly  !  Even  when  chased ^  it  never 

has  the  air  of  being  in  a  hurry, 

f  As  for  butterflies,  they  all  have  the  appear- 

ance of  being  about  seventeen  or  eighteen  years  old? 


[5] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Cho  tobu  ya  — 
Kono  yo  no  urami 
Naki  yo  ni! 

Cho  tobu  ya, 
Kono  yo  ni  nozomi 
Nai  yo  ni! 

Nami  no  hana  ni 
Tomari  kanetaru, 
Kocho  kana  ! 

Mutsumashi  ya! — 
Umare-kawaraba 
Nobe  no  cho. 

•>4V'* 

Nadeshiko  ni 

Chocho  shiroshi  — 

Tare  no  kon? 

Ichi-nichi  no 
Tsuma  to  miekeri  — 
Cho  futatsu. 

Kite  wa  maii, 

Futari  shidzuka  no 

Kocho  kana! 

[6] 


INSECT   POEMS 

How  the  butterfly  sports,  — just  as  if  there 
were  no  enmity  in  this  world! 

Ah,  the  butterfly!  —  it  sports  about  as  if  it 
had  nothing  more  to  desire  in  this  present  state  of 
existence. 

Having  found  it  difficult  indeed  to  perch  upon 
the  lyfoam-^  blossoms  of  the  waves,  —  alas  for  the  ^ 
butterfly  ! 

If  [in  our  next  existence)  we  be  reborn  as  but- 
terflies upon  the  moor,  then  perchance  we  may  be 
happy  together! 

On  the  pink-flower  there  is  a  white  butterfly : 
whose  spirit,  I  wonder  ? 

The  one-day  wife  has  at  last  appeared —  a 
pair  of  butterflies  ! 


Approaching  they  dance;  but  when  the  two 
meet  at  last  they  are  very  quiet,  the  butterflies! 

[7] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Cho  wo  ou 
Kokoro-mochitashi 
Itsumademo ! 

%* 

Yuku  e  naki: 
Ari  no  sumai  ya ! 
Go-getsu  ame. 

Hito  koe  wa. 
Tsuki  ga  naitaka 
Hototogisu ! 

Hototogisu 

Nakitsuru  kata  wo 

Nagamureba, — 
Tada  ariake  no 
Tsuki  zo  nokoreru. 

Hototogisu 

Chi  ni  naku  koe  wa 

Ariake  no 

Tsuki  yori  hokani 
Kiku  hito  mo  nashi. 


[8] 


INSECT    POEMS 

Would  that  I  might  airways  have  the  desire  of 
chasing  butterflies! 

Now  the  poor  creature  has  nowhere  to  go!  .  .  . 
Alas  for  the  dwellings  of  the  ants  in  this  rain  of 
the ^Uj  month! 

A  solitary  voice!  Did  the  Moon  cry?  'Twas 
but  the  hototogisu^ 


When  I  gaze  towards  the  place  where  I  heard 
the  hototogisu  cry,  lo  !  there  is  naught  save  the  wan 
morning  moon. 


Save  only  the  morning  moon,  none  heard  the 
heart' s-blood  cry  of  the  hototogisu. 


[9] 


LULLABIES 

AND 

CHILDREN'S   VERSE 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Nenneko, 
O-yama  no 
Usagi  no  ko. 
Naze  mata 
O-mimi  ga 
Nagai  e  yara  ? 
Okkasan  no 
O-naka  ni 
Oru  toku  ni, 
Biwa  no  ha, 
Sasa  no  ha, 
Tabeta  sona; 
Sore  de 
O-mimi  ga 
Nagai  e  sona. 


[    12    ] 


LULLABIES   AND    CHILDREN'S   VERSE 


Sleep,  babjy  sleep!  Why  are  the  honorable 
ears  of  the  Child  of  the  Hare  of  the  honorable  moun- 
tain so  long  ?  'T  is  because  when  he  dwelt  within 
her  honored  womb,  his  mamma  ate  the  leaves  of  the 
loquat,  the  leaves  of  the  bamboo-grass.  That  is  why 
his  honorable  ears  are  so  long. 


[  >3] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Nono-San, 

or 
0-Tsuki-San 
Ikutsu  ? 
"Jiu-san, — 
Kokonotsu." 
Sore  wa  mada 
Wakai  yo, 
Wakai  ye  mo 
Dori 

Akai  iro  no 
Obi  to, 
Shiro  iro  no 
Obi  to 

Koshi  ni  shanto 
Musun  de. 
Uma  ni  yaru  ? 

"  lyaiya ! " 
Ushi  ni  yaru  ? 
"lyaiya!" 


[  H] 


LULLABIES    AND    CHILDREN'S   VERSE 


Nono-San, 
Little  Lady  Moon, 
How  old  are  you  ? 
"  Thirteen  days,  — 
Thirteen  and  nine  J' 
That  is  still  young. 
And  the  reason  must  be 
For  that  bright  red  obiy 
So  nicely  tied,^ 
And  that  nice  white  girdle 
About  your  hips. 
Will  you  give  it  to  the  horse? 

''Oh,  no,  noT 
Will  you  give  it  to  the  cow  ? 

''Oh,  no,  no!'' 


[  ^5] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Tobi,  tobi,  maute  mise ! 
Ashita  no  ba  ni 
Karasu  ni  kakushite 
Nezumi  yaru. 


Ato  no  karasu  saki  ine, 
Ware  ga  iye  ga  yakeru  ken, 
Hayo  inde  midzu  kake, 
Midzu  ga  nakya  yarozo, 
Amattara  ko  ni  yare, 
Ko  ga  nakya  modose. 


Hotaru  koe  midzu  nomasho ; 
Achi  no  midzu  wa  nigaizo ; 
Kochi  no  midzu  wa  amaizo. 


Cho-cho,  ch5-cho,  na  no  ha  ni  tomare ; 
Na  no  ha  ga  iyenara,  te  ni  tomare. 


Daidaimushi,  daidaimushi,  tsuno  chitto  dashare 
Ame  kaze  fuku  kara  tsuno  chitto  dashare  ! 

[  i6  ] 


LULLABIES    AND    CHILDREN'S    VERSE 

Kite,  kite,  let  me  see  you  dance,  and  to-mor- 
row evening,  when  the  crows  do  not  know,  I  will  give 
you  a  rat. 


O  tardy  crow,  hasten  forward!  Your  house 
is  all  on  fire.  Hurry  to  throw  water  upon  it.  If 
there  be  no  water,  I  will  give  you.  If  you  have  too 
much,  give  it  to  your  child.  If  you  have  no  childy 
then  give  it  back  to  me. 


Come,  firefly,  I  will  give  you  water  to  drink. 
The  water  of  that  place  is  bitter ;  the  water  here  is 
sweet. 

Butterfly,  little  butterfly,  light  upon  them  leaf. 
But  if  thou  dost  not  like  the  na  leaf,  light,  I  pray 
thee,  upon  my  hand. 

Snail,  snail,  put  out  your  horns  a  little:  it 
rains  and  the  wind  is  blowing,  so  put  out  your  horns  ^ 
just  for  a  little  while. 

[  17  ] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Wakakereba 
Nichi-yuki  shiraji : 

Mahi  wa  semu, 
Shitabe  no  tsukahi 
Ohite-tohorase. 


[  ^8  ] 


LULLABIES    AND    CHILDREN'S   VERSE 

As  he  is  so  young,  he  cannot  know  the  way. 
.  .  .  T^othemessenger  of  the  Underworld  I  will  give 
a  bribe y  and  entreat  him,  saying :  "  Do  thou  kindly 
take  the  little  one  upon  thy  back  along  the  roadJ'^ 


[  ^9] 


LOVE   SONGS 

AND 

LYRICS 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Ka-mi-yo  ko-no-ka-ta 
Ka-wa-ra-nu  mo-no  wa : 
Mi-dzu  no  na-ga-re  to 
Ko-i  no  mi-chi. 

Eko  suru  tote 
Hotoke  no  mae  ye 
Futari  mukaite, 
Konabe  date. 

Adana  e-gao  ni 
Mayowanu  mono  wa 
Ki-Butsu,  —  kana-Butsu, 
Ishi-botoke ! 

Asu  ari  to 
Omo  kokoro  no 

Ada-zakura : 
Yo  wa  ni  arashi  no 
Fukanu  monokawa? 

Kawaru  uki-yo  ni 
Kawaranu  mono  wa 
Kawarumai  to  no 
Koi  no  michi. 

[   22] 


LOVE    SONGS    AND    LYRICS 

Things  never  changed  since  the  Time  of  the  Gods 
The  flowing  of  water y  the  Way  of  Love, 


"Even  while  praying  together  in  front  of  the  tablets 

ancestraly 
Lovers  find  chance  to  murmur  prayers  never  meant 

for  the  deadn 

He  who  was  never  bewitched  by  the  charming  smile 

of  a  woman, 
A  wooden  Buddha  is  he  —  a  Buddha  of  bronze  or 

stone  ! 


Thinking  to  -  morrow  remains ^  thou  heart's  frail 

flower-of -cherry  ? 
How  knowest  whether  this  night  the  tempest  will 

not  come  ? 


All  things  change y  we  are  told,  in  this  world  of 

change  and  sorrow ; 
But  love's  way  never  changes  of  promising  never  to 

change, 

[^3] 


JAPANESE   LYRICS 

Oya  no  iken  de 
Akirameta  no  wo 
Mata  mo  rin-ye  de 
Omoi-dasu. 


Kaai,  kaai  to 
Naku  mushi  yori  mo 
Nakanu  hotaru  ga 
Mi  wo  kogasu. 
Nanno  ingwa  de 
Jitsu  naki  hito  ni 
Shin  wo  akashite, — 
Aa  kuyashi ! 

Wasuraruru 
Mi  naran  to  omo 

Kokoro  koso 
Wasure  nu  yori  mo 
Omoi  nari-kere. 

•ifjC" 

Hi  kurureba 
Sasoeshi  mono  wo  — 

Akanuma  no 
Makomo  no  kure  no 
Hitori-ne  zo  uki ! 

[  24] 


LOVE   SONGS   AND    LYRICS 

Father  and  mother  forbade  ^  and  so  I  gave  up  my 

lover;  — 
Tet  still,  with  the  whirl  of  the  Wheel^  the  thought 

of  him  comes  and  goes. 

Numberless  insects  there  are  that  call  from  dawn 

to  evening. 
Crying,  "/  love!  I  love!'' — but  the  Firefly's 

silent  passion. 
Making  its  body  burn,  is  deeper  than  all  their  longing. 
Even  such  is  my  love  .   .   .  yet  I  cannot  think 

through  what  ingwa  ^ 
I  opened  my  heart — alas! — to  a  being  not  sincere  ! 


To  wish  to  be  forgotten  by  the  beloved  is  a 
soul-task  harder  far  than  trying  not  to  forget,        Q 


At  the  coming  of  twilight  I  invited  him  to 
return  with  me — /  Now  to  sleep  alone  in  the 
shadow  of  the  rushes  of  Akanuma  —  ah  !  what 
misery  unspeakable  /"  ^° 

[25] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 


Koshi  o-son  gojin  wo  ou ; 
Ryokuju  namida  wo  tarete  rakin  wo  hitataru  ; 
Komon  hitotabi  irite  fukaki  koto  umi  no  gotoshi ; 
Kore  yori  shoro  kore  rojin. 


Tadzunetsuru, 
Hana  ka  tote  koso. 

Hi  wo  kurase, 
Akenu  ni  otoru 
Akane  sasuran  ? 

Izuru  hi  no 
Honomeku  iro  wo 

Waga  sode  ni 
Tsutsumaba  asu  mo 
Kimiya  tomaran. 

Omae  shindara  tera  ewa  yaranu  ! 
Yaete  konishite  sake  de  nomu. 


[26] 


LOVE   SONGS    AND    LYRICS 

Closely,  closely  the  youthful  prince  now  follows 
after  the  gem-bright  maid ;  — 

The  tears  of  the  fair  one^fallingy  have  mois- 
tened all  her  robes. 

But  the  august  lord,  having  once  become  en- 
amored of  her —  the  depth  of  his  longing  is  like  the 
depth  of  the  sea. 

Therefore  it  is  only  I  that  am  left  for  lorn,  — 
only  I  that  am  left  to  wander  alone. 

Being  on  my  way  to  pay  a  visit,  I  found  that 
which  I  took  to  be  a  flower :  therefore  here  I  spend 
the  day.  .  .  .  Why,  in  the  time  before  dawn,  the 
dawn-blush  tint  should  glow  —  that,  indeed,  I  know 
not. " 


If  with  my  sleeve  I  hide  the  faint  fair  color 
of  the  dawning  sun,  —  then,  perhaps,  in  the  morn- 
ing my  lord  will  remain. 


Dear,  shouldst  thou  die,  grave   shall  hold  thee 

never  ! 
I  thy  body's  ashes,  mixed  with  wine,  will  drink. 

[^7] 


GOBLIN   POETRY 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Hi  tomoshite 
Kitsune  no  kwaseshi, 

Asobime  wa  — 
Izuka  no  uma  no 
Hone  ni  ya  aruran ! 


Kitsune-bi  no 
Moyuru  ni  tsukete, 

Waga  tama  no 
Kiyuru  yo  nari 
Kokoro-hoso-michi ! 


Ko-ya,  sore  to  ? 
Ayame  mo  wakanu 

Rikombyo : 
Izure  wo  tsuma  to 
Hiku  zo  wazuraii ! 

Futatsu  naki 
Inochi  nagara  mo 

Kakegae  no 
Karada  no  miyuru  — 
Kage  no  wazurai ! 

r  30  ] 


GOBLIN    POETRY 

—  Ah  the  wanton  [lighting  her  lantern^  !  — 
so  a  fox-fire  '^  is  kindled  in  the  time  of  fox-trans- 
formation! .  .  .  Perhaps  she  is  really  nothing 
more  than  an  old  horse -bone  ^^  from  somewhere 
or  other,  .  .  . 


Because  of  that  Fox-fire  burning  there  ^  the  very 
soul  of  me  is  like  to  be  extinguished  in  this  narrow 
path. 


Which  one  is  this  ?  —  which  one  is  that  ?  Be- 
tween the  two  shapes  of  the  Rikombyo^^  it  is  not 
possible  to  distinguish.  To  find  out  which  is  the  real 
wife  —  that  will  be  an  affliction  of  spirit  indeed! 


Two  lives  there  certainly  are  not ;  —  never- 
theless an  extra  body  is  visible ^  by  reason  of  the 
Shadow-Sickness, 


[31  ] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Naga-tabi  no 
Oto  wo  shitaite 

Mi  futatsu  ni 
Naru  wa  onna  no 
Saru  rikombyo. 

Miru  kage  mo 
Naki  wazurai  no 

Rikombyo,  — 
Omoi  no  hoka  ni 
Futatsu  miru  kage ! 

Rikombyo 
Hito  ni  kakushite 

Oku-zashiki, 
Omote  y  deasanu 
Kage  no  wazurai. 

Mi  wa  koko  ni ; 
Tama  wa  otoko  ni 

Soine  suru  ;  — 
Kokoro  mo  shiraga 
Haha  ga  kaiho. 

[32  ] 


GOBLIN    POETRY 

Yearning  after  her  far-journeying  husband, 
the  woman  has  thus  become  two  bodies y  by  reason' of 
her  ghostly  sickness. 


Though  [it  was  said  that),  because  of  her 
ghostly  sickness,  there  was  not  even  a  shadow  of  her 
left  to  be  seen,  — yet,  contrary  to  expectation,  there 
are  two  shadows  of  her  to  be  seen  I 


Afflicted  with  the  Rikombyo,  she  hides  away 
from  people  in  the  back  room,  and  never  approaches 
the  front  of  the  house,  — because  of  her  Shadow- 
disease. 


Here  her  body  lies  but  her  soul  is  far  away, 
asleep  in  the  arms  of  a  man ;  —  and  the  white-haired 
mother,  little  knowing  her  daughter  s  heart,  is  nurs- 
ing [only  the  body), 

[  33] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Tamakushige 
Futatsu  no  sugata 

Misenuru  wa, 
Awase-kagami  no 
Kage  no  wazurai. 

•iff 

Me  wa  kagami, 
Kuchi  wa  tarai  no 

Hodo  ni  aku : 
Gama  mo  k6sho  no 
Mono  to  koso  shire. 

Hamaguri  no 
Kuchi  aku  toki  ya, 

Shinkiro  ! 
Yo  ni  shirare  ken 
Tatsu-no-miya-hime ! 

Shinkiro  — 
Tatsu  no  miyako  no 

Hinagata  wo 
Shio-hi  no  oki  ni 
Misuru  hamaguri ! 

[34] 


GOBLIN    POETRY 

If^  when  seated  before  her  toilet-stand,  she 
sees  two  faces  reflected  in  her  mirror,  —  that  might 
be  caused  by  the  mirror  doubling  itself  under  the 
influence  of  the  Shadow-Sickness .^"^ 


The  eye  of  it,  widely  open,  like  a  {round) 
mirror;  the  mouth  of  it  opening  like  a  wash-basin 
—  by  these  things  you  may  know  that  the  Toad  is 
a  toilet  article, ^^ 


When  the  hamaguri^'^  opens  its  mouth  —  lo  I 
Shinkiro  appears  /  .  .  .  Then  all  can  clearly  see  the 
Maiden-Princess  of  the  Dragon-Palace. 


Lo  !  in  the  offing  at  ebb-tide,  the  hamaguri 
makes  visible  the  miniature  image  of  Shinkiro  —  the 
Dragon-  Capital  I 

[  35  ] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Nemidare  no 
Nagaki  kami  woba 

Furi-wakete, 
Chi  hiro  ni  nobasu 
Rokuro-Kubi  kana ! 


"  Atama  naki 
Bakemono  nari'' — to 

Rokuro-Kubi, 
Mite  odorokan 
Onoga  karada  wo. 

Tsuka-no-ma  ni 
Hari  wo  tsutawaru, 

Rokuro-Kubi 
Keta-keta  warau  — 
Kao  no  kowasa  yo! 

Roku  shaku  no 
Byobu  ni  nobiru 

Rokuro-Kubi 
Mite  wa,  go  shaku  no 
Mi  wo  chijimi-keri ! 

[  36  ] 


GOBLIN    POETRY 

Oh  /  . . .  Shaking  loose  her  long  hair  disheveled 
by  sleepy  the  Rokuro-Kubi  '^  stretches  her  neck  to 
the  length  of  a  thousand  fathoms  I 


Will  not  the  Rokuro-Kubiy  viewing  with  as- 
tonishment^^ her  own  body  [left  behind)  cry  outy 
"  Ohy  what  a  headless  goblin  have  you  become  T' 


Swiftly  gliding  along  the  roof-beam^  the  Ro- 
kuro-Kubi  laughs  with  the  sound  of  ^^  keta-keta'* 
—  oh!  the  fearfulness  of  her  face  I 


Beholding  the  Rokuro-Kubi  rise  up  above  the 
six-foot  screen,  any  five-foot  person  would  have 
become  shortened  by  fear, 

[37] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Yuki-Onna  — 
Yoso  kushi  mo 

Atsu  kori; 
Sasu-kogai  ya 
Kori  naruran. 


Honrai  wa 
Ku  naru  mono  ka, 

Yuki-Onna? 
Yoku-yoku  mireba 
Ichi-butsu  mo  nashi ! 


Yo-akereba 
Kiete  yuku  e  wa 

Shirayuki  no 
Onna  to  mishi  mo 
Yanagi  nari-keri! 

'■tii' 

Yuki-Onna 
Mite  wa  yasathiku, 

Matsu  wo  ori 
Nama-dake  hishigu 
Chikara  ari-keri! 

[  38] 


GOBLIN    POETRY 

As  for  the  Snow- Woman, ^°  —  even  her  best 
comb,  if  I  mistake  not,  is  made  of  thick  ice ;  and 
her  hair-pin,  too,  is  probably  made  of  ice. 


Was  she,  then,  a  delusion  from  the  very  first, 
that  Snow-Woman,  —  a  thing  that  vanishes  into 
empty  space  ?  When  I  look  carefully  all  about  me, 
not  one  trace  of  her  is  to  be  seen  ! 


Having  vanished  at  daybreak  [that  Snow- 
Woman),  none  could  say  whither  she  had  gone.  But 
what  had  seemed  to  be  a  snow-white  woman  became 
indeed  a  willow-tree  I 


Though  the  Snow-Woman  appears  to  sight 
slender  and  gentle,  yet,  to  snap  the  pine-trees  asunder 
and  to  crush  the  live  bamboos,  she  must  have  had 
strength, 

[39] 


JAPANESE   LYRICS 

Samukesa  ni 
Zotto  wa  suredo 

Yuki-Onna,  — 
Yuki  ore  no  naki 
Yanagi-goshi  ka  mo! 

».?? 

Erimoto  ye 
Mizu  kakeraruru 

Kokochi  seri, 
"Hishaku  kase"  cho 
Fune  no  kowane  ni. 

Yurei  ni 
Kasu-hishaku  yori 

Ichi-hayaku 
Onore  ga  koshi  mo 
Nukeru  sencho. 


Yurei  wa 
Ki  naru  Izumi  no 

Hito  nagara, 
Ao-umibara  ni 
Nadote  itsuran  ? 


[40] 


GOBLIN    POETRY 

Though  the  Snow-Woman  makes  one  shiver 
by  her  coldness,  —  ah,  the  willowy  grace  of  her  form 
charms  us  in  spite  of  the  cold.'''' 


As  if  the  nape  of  our  necks  had  been  sprin- 
kled with  cold  water,  —  so  we  felt  while  listening 
to  the  voice  of  the  ship-ghost,  saying:  —  *^  Lend  me 
a  dipper!'''''' 


The  loins  of  the  captain  himself  were  knocked 
out  very  much  more  quickly  than  the  bottom  of  the 
dipper  that  was  to  be  given  to  the  ghost. 


Since  any  ghost  must  be  an  inhabitant  of  the 
Yellow  Springs, ""^  how  should  a  ghost  appear  on  the 
Blue  Sea-Plain? 


[41  ] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Sono  sugata, 
Ikari  wo  ot'e, 

Tsuki-matoii 
Fune  no  hesaki  ya 
Tomomori  no  rei ! 


Tsumi  fukaki 
Umi  ni  shidzumishi, 
Yurei  no 
"Ukaman"  tote  ya ! 
Fune  ni  sugareru. 

Ukaman  to 
Fune  wo  shitaeru 

Yurei  wa, 
Shidzumishi  hito  no 
Omoi  naruran. 


Urameshiki 
Sugata  wa  sugoki 

Yurei  no, 
Kaji  wo  jama  suru 
Fune  no  Tomomori. 

[42   ] 


GOBLIN   POETRY 

T^hat  Shape y  carrying  the  anchor  on  its  back, 
and  following  after  the  ship  —  now  at  the  how  and 
now  at  the  stern  —  ah,  the  ghost  of  TomomoriJ^^ 


Crying,  "  Now  perchance  I  shall  be  saved  I  " 
the  ghost  that  sank  into  the  deep  Sea  of  Sin  clings 
to  the  passing  ship  I  ^5 


The  ghosts  following  after  our  ship  in  their 
efforts  to  rise  again  [or,  "/^  be  save d''^  might  per- 
haps be  the  [last  vengeful)  thoughts  ^^  of  drowned 
men. 


With  vengeful  aspect,  the  grisly  ghost  of 
Tomomori  (rises)  at  the  stern  of  the  ship  to  hinder 
the  play  of  her  rudder, 

[43] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Ochi-irite, 
Uwo  no  ejiki  to 

Nari  ni  ken  ;  — 
Funa-yurei  mo 
Nama-kusaki  kaze. 


Shiwo-hi  ni  wa 
Seizoroe  shite, 

Heikegani 
Ukiyo  no  sama  wo 
Yoko  ni  niramitsu. 

Saikai  ni 
Shizumi-nuredomo, 

Heikegani 
Kora  no  iro  mo 
Yahari  aka-hata. 


Make-ikusa 
Munen  to  mune  ni 

Hasami  ken ;  — 
Kao  mo  makka  ni 
Naru  Heikegani. 

[44] 


GOBLIN    POETRY 

Having  perished  in  the  sea,  [those  Heike) 
would  probably  have  become  food  for  fishes,  ( Any- 
how, whenever)  the  ship  following  ghosts  (^appear), 
the  wind  has  a  smell  of  raw  fish  ! 


Marshaled  [on  the  beach)  at  the  ebb  of  the 
tide,  the  Heike-crabs  ^^  obliquely  glare  at  the  appa^ 
rition  of  this  miserable  world. 


Though  [the  Heike)  long  ago  sank  and  per- 
ished in  the  Western  Sea,  the  Heike-crabs  still  dis- 
play upon  their  upper  shells  the  color  of  the  Red 
Standard, 


Because  of  the  pain  of  defeat,  claws  have 
grown  on  their  breasts,  I  think ;  —  even  the  faces 
of  the  Heike-crabs  have  become  crimson  [with  anger 
and  shame) . 

[45] 


JAPANESE   LYRICS 

Mikata  mina 
Oshi-tsubusareshi 

Heikegani 
Ikon  wo  mune  ni 
Hasami  mochikeri. 

Tokonoma  ni 
Ikeshi  tachiki  mo 

Taore-keri ; 
Yanari  ni  yama  no 
Ugoku  kakemono! 

Saka-bashira 
Tateshi  wa  tazo  ya? 

Kokoro  ni  mo 
Fushi  aru  hito  no 
Shiwaza  naruran. 


Hidayama  wo 
Kiri-kite  tateshi 

Saka-bashira  — 
Nanno  takumi  no 
Shiwaza  naruran? 

[46] 


GOBLIN    POETRY 

All  the  [Heike)  party  having  been  utterly 
crushedy  claws  have  grown  upon  the  breasts  of  the 
Heik'e-crabs  because  of  the  resentment  in  their  hearts. 


Even  the  live  tree  set  in  the  alcove  has  fallen 
down ;  and  the  mountains  in  the  hanging  picture 
tremble  to  the  quaking  made  by  the  Tanari  I  ^^ 


Who  set  the  house-pillar  upside-down  ?  Surely 
that  must  have  been  the  work  of  a  man  with  a  knot 
in  his  heart J^^ 


That  house-pillar  hewn  in  the  mountains  of 
Hida,  and  thence  brought  here  and  erected  upside- 
down  —  what  carpenter  s  work  can  it  be  ?  ^^^ 

[47] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Ue  shita  wo 
Chigaete  tateshi 

Hashira  ni  wa 
Sakasama-goto  no 
Urei  aranan. 


Kabe  ni  mimi 
Arite,  kike  to  ka? 

Sakashima  ni 
Tateshi  hashira  ni 
Yanari  suru  oto! 
*% 

Uri-iye  no 
Aruji  wo  toeba, 

Oto  arite  : 
Ware  me  ga  kuchi  wo 
Aku  saka-bashira. 


Omoikiya ! 
Sakasa-bashira  no 

Hashira-kake 
Kakinishit  uta  mo 
Yamai  ari  to  wa ! 


[48] 


GOBLIN    POETRY 


As  for  that  house-pillar  mistakenly  planted 
upside-down^  it  will  certainly  cause  adversity  and 


sorrow. 


O  Ears  that  he  in  the  wall  I  ^^  listen  y  will  ye  ? 
to  the  groaning  and  the  creaking  of  the  house-post 
that  was  planted  upside-down  ! 


When  I  inquired  for  the  master  of  the  house 
that  was  for  sale,  there  came  to  me  only  a  strange 
sound  by  way  of  reply  ^  —  the  sound  of  the  upside- 
down  house-post  opening  its  eyes  and  mouth!  (i.e. 
its  knots  and  cracks.) 


Who  could  have  thought  it  I  —  even  the  poem 
inscribed  upon  the  pillar-tablet ^  attached  to  the  pil- 
lar which  was  planted  upside-down^  has  taken  the 
same  (ghostly)  sickness.'^^ 

[49] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Nanige  naki 
Ishi  no  Jizo  no 

Sugata  sae, 
Yo  wa  osoroshiki 
Mikage  to  zo  naki. 

Ita  hitoe 
Shita  wa  Jigoku  ni, 

Sumizome  no 
Bozu  no  umi  ni 
Deru  mo  ayashina ! 

Hegasan  to 
Rokuji-no-fuda  wo, 

Yurei  mo 
Nam'mai  da  to 
Kazoete  zo  miru. 


Tada  ichi  no 
Kami  no  o-fuda  wa 

Sasuga  ni  mo 
Norike  naku  to  mo 
Hegashi  kanekeri. 

[50] 


GOBLIN    POETRY 

T^ hough  the  stone  yizo  looks  as  if  nothing 
were  the  matter  with  it,  they  say  that  at  night  it 
assumes  an  awful  aspect?^ 


Since  there  is  but  the  thickness  of  a  single 
plank  [between  the  voyager  and  the  sea),  and  un- 
derneath is  Hell,  V  is  indeed  a  weird  thing  that  a 
black-robed  priest  should  rise  from  the  sea  !'^^ 


Even  the  ghost  that  would  remove  the  charms^^ 
written  with  six  characters  actually  tries  to  count 
them,  repeating :  "  How  many  sheets  are  there  ?  "  37 


Of  the  august  written  -  charms  of  the  god 
{which  were  pasted  upon  the  walls  of  the  house)  y  not 
even  one  could  by  any  effort  be  pulled  off,  though  the 
rice-paste  with  which  they  had  been  fastened  was 
all  gone. 

[51  ] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Yo-arashi  ni 
Chishiho  itadaku 

Furu  tsubaki, 
Hota-hota  ochiru 
Hana  no  nama-kubi. 

%« 

Kusa  mo  ki  mo 
Nemureru  koro  no 

Sayo  kaze  ni, 
Mehana  no  ugoku 
Furu-tsubaki  kana ! 

Tomoshibi  no 
Kage  ayashige  ni 

Miyenuru  wa 
Abura  shiborishi 
Furu-tsubaki  ka-mo? 


[  52  ] 


GOBLIN    POETRY 

When  by  the  night-storm  is  shaken  the  blood- 
crowned  and  ancient  tsubaki-tree,^^  then  one  by  one 
fall  the  gory  heads  of  the  Jlowers,  {with  the  sound 
of^  hota-hota! 


When  even'  the  grass  and  the  trees  are  sleep- 
ing under  the  faint  wind  of  the  night,  — then  do  the 
eyes  and  the  noses  (or^^  the  buds  and  the  flowers  '*) 
of  the  old  tsubaki-tree  move  I 


As  for  (the  reason  why)  the  light  of  that  lamp 
appears  to  be  a  Weirdness,  — perhaps  the  oil  was 
expressed  from  (the  nuts  of)  the  ancient  tsubaki?^'^ 


[53] 


THE  RIVER  OF  HEAVEN 


JAPANESE   LYRICS 

The  following  group  of  poems  are  all  from  the  Manyoshu^ 
or  "  Gathering  of  a  Myriad  Leaves/*  a  vast  collection  of 
poems  composed  before  the  middle  of  the  eighth  century. 
They  represent  the  old  classic  poetry  at  its  purest,  free  from 
alien  influence ;  and  they  offer  us  many  suggestions  as  to 
the  condition  of  Japanese  life  and  thought  twelve  hundred 
years  ago.  The  legend  to  which  they  refer  is  as  follows :  — 

The  great  god  of  the  firmament  had  a  lovely  daughter, 
Tanabata-tsume,  who  passed  her  days  in  weaving  garments 
for  her  august  parent.  She  rejoiced  in  her  work,  and  thought 
that  there  was  no  greater  pleasure  than  the  pleasure  of  weav- 
ing. But  one  day,  as  she  sat  before  her  loom  at  the  door 
of  her  heavenly  dwelling,  she  saw  a  handsome  peasant  lad 
pass  by,  leading  an  ox,  and  she  fell  in  love  with  him.  Her 
august  father,  divining  her  secret  wish,  gave  her  the  youth 
for  a  husband.  But  the  wedded  lovers  became  too  fond  of 
each  other,  and  neglected  their  duty  to  the  god  of  the  firma- 
ment ;  the  sound  of  the  shuttle  was  no  longer  heard,  and  the 
ox  wandered,  unheeded,  over  the  plains  of  heaven.  There- 
fore the  great  god  was  displeased,  and  he  separated  the  pair. 
They  were  sentenced  to  live  thereafter  apart,  with  the  Celestial  % 
River  ^°  between  them ;  but  it  was  permitted  them  to  see  each 
other  once  a  year,  on  the  seventh  night  of  the  seventh  moon. 
On  that  night  —  providing  the  skies  be  clear  —  the  birds 
of  heaven  make,  with  their  bodies  and  wings,  a  bridge  over 
the  stream ;  and  by  means  of  that  bridge  the  lovers  can  meet. 
But  if  there  be  rain,  the  River  of  Heaven  rises,  and  becomes 
so  wide  that  the  bridge  cannot  be  formed.  So  the  husband 
and  wife  cannot  always  meet,  even  on  the  seventh  night  of 

[  56  ]  J 

1 


THE    RIVER    OF    HEAVEN 

the  seventh  month;  it  may  happen,  by  reason  of  bad  weather, 
that  they  cannot  meet  for  three  or  four  years  at  a  time.  But 
their  love  remains  immortally  young  and  eternally  patient; 
and  they  continue  to  fulfil  their  respective  duties  each  day 
without  fault,  —  happy  in  their  hope  of  being  able  to  meet 
on  the  seventh  night  of  the  next  seventh  month. 


JAPANESE   LYRICS 

Amanogawa 
Ai-muki  tachite, 

Waga  koishi 
Kimi  kimasu  nari 
Himo-toki  makena! 


Hisakata  no 
Ama  no  kawase  ni, 

Fune  ukete, 
Koyoi  ka  kimi  ga 

Agari  kimasan  ? 

Kaze  kumo  wa 
Futatsu  no  kishi  ni 

Kayoedomo, 
Waga  toho-tsuma  no 
Koto  zo  kayowanu ! 
$"'$ 

Tsubute  ni  mo 
Nage  koshitsu-beki, 

Amanogawa 
Hedatereba  ka  mo, 
Amata  sube-naki ! 

[58] 


THE    RIVER    OF    HEAVEN 

He  is  coming,  my  long-desired  lord,  whom  I 
have  been  waiting  to  meet  here,  on  the  hanks  of  the 
River  of  Heaven.  ,  .  .  The  moment  of  loosening 
my  girdle  is  nigh  !  ^^ 


Over  the  Rapids  of  the  Everlasting  Heaven, 
floating  in  his  boat,  my  lord  will  doubtless  deign  to 
come  to  me  this  very  night. 


Though  winds  and  clouds  to  either  bank  may 
freely  come  or  go,  between  myself  and  my  far-away 
spouse  no  message  whatever  may  pass. 


To  the  opposite  bank  one  might  easily  fling  a 
pebble ;  yet,  being  separated  from  him  by  the  River 
of  Heaven^  alas!  to  hope  for  a  meeting  (except  in 
autumn^  is  utterly  useless, 

[59] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Aki-kaze  no 
Fukinishi  hi  yori 

"Itsushika''  to  — ; 
Waga  machi  koishi 
Kimi  zo  kimaseru. 


Amanogawa 
Ito  kawa-nami  wa 

Tatanedomo, 
Samorai  gatashi  — 
Chikaki  kono  se  wo. 


Sode  furaba 
Mi  mo  kawashitsu-beku 

Chika-keredo, 
Wataru  sube  nashi, 
Aki  nishi  araneba. 

KageroT  no 
Honoka  ni  miete 

Wakarenaba ;  — 
Motonaya  koi'n 
Aii-toki  made  wa ! 


[60] 


THE    RIVER    OF    HEAVEN 

From  the  day  that  the  autumn  wind  began  to 
blow  [I  kept  saying  to  myself),  ^'  Ah!  when  shall 
we  meet?''  —  but  now  my  beloved,  for  whom  I 
waited  and  longed,  has  come  indeed  I 


though  the  waters  of  the  River  of  Heaven 
have  not  greatly  risen,  [yet  to  cross)  this  near 
stream  and  to  wait  upon  (my  lord  and  lover)  re- 
mains impossible. 


Though  she  is  so  near  that  the  waving  of  her 
{long)  sleeves  can  be  distinctly  seen,  yet  there  is  no 
way  to  cross  the  stream  before  the  season  of  autumn. 


When  we  were  separated,  I  had  seen  her  for 
a  moment  only, —  and  dimly  as  one  sees  a  flying 
midge ;  now  I  must  vainly  long  for  her  as  before, 
until  time  of  our  next  meeting  I 

[6i] 


JAPANESE   LYRICS 

Hikoboshi  no 
Tsuma  mukae-bune 

Kogizurashi,  — 
Ama-no-Kawara  ni 
Kiri  no  tateru  wa. 

Kasumi  tatsu 
Ama-no-Kawara  ni, 

Kimi  matsu  to, — 
Ikayo  hodo  ni 
Mono-suso  nurenu. 


Amanogawa, 
Mi-tsu  no  nami  oto 

Sawagu-nari : 
Waga  matsu-kimi  no 
Funade-surashi  mo. 


Tanabata  no 
Sode  maku  yoi  np 

Akatoki  wa, 
Kawase  no  tazu  wa 
Nakazu  to  mo  yoshi. 

[  62  ] 


THE    RIVER    OF    HEAVEN 

Methinks  that  Hikoboshi  must  be  rowing  his 
boat  to  meet  his  wife^ — for  a  mist  [as  of  oar- 
spray)  is  rising  over  the  course  of  the  Heavenly 
Stream. 


While  awaiting  my  lord  on  the  misty  shore 
of  the  River  oj  Heaven y  the  ski?'ts  of  my  robe  have 
somehow  become  wet. 


On  the  River  of  Heaven,  at  the  place  of  the 
august  ferry,  the  sound  of  the  water  has  become 
loud:  perhaps  my  long-awaited  lord  will  soon  be 
coming  in  his  boat. 


As  T^anabata  [slumbers)  with  her  long  sleeves 
rolled  up,  until  the  reddening  of  the  dawn,  do  not, 
O  storks  of  the  river-shallows,  awaken  her  by  your 
cries. 

[63] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Amanogawa 
Kiri-tachi-wataru : 

Kyo,  kyo,  to  — 
Waga  matsu-koishi 
Funade-surashi ! 


Amanogawa, 
Yasu  no  watari  ni, 

Fune  ukete ;  — 
Waga  tachi-matsu  to 
Imo  ni  tsuge  koso. 


O-sora  yo 
Kayo  ware  sura, 

Na  ga  yue  ni, 
Amanokawa-ji  no 
Nazumite  zo  koshi. 

Yachihoko  no 
Kami  no  mi-yo  yori 

Tomoshi-zuma ;  — 
Hito-shiri  ni  keri 
Tsugiteshi  omoeba. 

[64] 


THE    RIVER    OF    HEAVEN 

[She  sees  that)  a  mist  is  spreading  across  the 
River  of  Heaven.  ..."  To-day,  to-day,''  she 
thinks,  ''my  long-awaited  lord  will  probably  come 
over  in  his  boat'' 


By  the  ferry  of  Tasu,  on  the  River  of  Hea- 
ven, the  boat  is  floating :  I  pray  you  tell  my  be- 
loved that  I  stand  here  and  wait. 


Though  I  [being  a  Star-god)  can  pass  freely 
to  and  fro,  through  the  great  sky,  — yet  to  cross 
over  the  River  of  Heaven,  for  your  sake,  was 
weary  work  indeed! 


From  the  august  Age  of  the  God-of- Eight- 
Thousand- Spears,  she  had  been  my  spouse  in  secret 
only ;  yet  now,  because  of  my  constant  longing  for 
her,  our  relation  has  become  known  to  men, 

[65  ] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Ame  tsuchi  to 
Wakareshi  toki  yo 

Onoga  tsuma  ; 
Shika  zo  te  ni  aru 
Aki  matsu  are  wa. 


Waga  koru 
Niho  no  omo  wa 

Koyoi"  mo  ka 
Ama-no-kawara  ni 
Ishi-makura  makan. 


Amanogawa. 
Mikomori-gusa  no 

Aki-kaze  ni 
Nabikafu  mireba, 
Toki  kitarurashi. 


Waga  seko  ni 
Ura-koi  oreba, 

Amanogawa 
Yo-fune  kogi-toyomu 
Kaji  no  'to  kikoyu. 

[  66] 


THE    RIVER    OF    HEAVEN 

From  the  time  when  heaven  and  earth  were 
parted^  she  has  been  my  own  wife ;  — yet,  to  be  with  -^ 
her,  I  must  always  wait  till  autumn. 


With  my  beloved,  of  the  ruddy-tinted  cheeks, 
this  night  indeed  will  I  descend  into  the.  bed  oj  the 
River  of  Heaven,  to  sleep  on  a  pillow  of  stone. 


When  I  see  the  water-grasses  of  the  River  of 
Heaven  bend  in  the  autumn  wind  [I  think  to  f?iy- 
self) :  **  The  time  ( for  our  meeting)  seems  to  have 


come  J' 


When  I  feel  in  my  heart  a  sudden  longing  for 
my  husband,  then  on  the  River  of  Heaven  the  sound 
of  the  rowing  of  the  night-boat  is  heard,  and  the 
plash  of  the  oar  resounds. 


[67] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

To-zuma  to 
Tamakura  kawashi 

Netaru  yo  wa, 
Tori-gane  na  naki 
Akeba  aku  to  mo ! 


Yorozu-yo  ni 
Tazusawari  ite 

Ai  mi-domo, 
Omoi-sugu-beki 
Koi  naranaku  ni, 


Waga  tame  to, 
Tanabata-tsume  no, 

Sono  yado  ni, 
Oreru  shirotai 
Nuit  ken  kamo  ? 


Shirakumo  no 
I-ho  e  kakurite 

To-kedomo, 
Yoi'-sarazu  min 
Imo  ga  atari  wa. 

[68] 


THE    RIVER    OF    HEAVEN 

In  the  night  when  I  am  reposing  with  my 
(now)  far-away  spouse,  having  exchanged  jewel- 
pillows^^  with  her,  let  not  the  cock  crow,  even 
though  the  day  should  dawn. 


Though  for  a  myriad  ages  we  should  remain 
hand-in-hand  and  face  to  face,  our  exceeding  love 
could  never  come  to  an  end,  ( Why  then  should  Hea- 
ven deem  it  necessary  to  part  us  ?) 


The  white  cloth  which  Tanabata  has  woven 
for  my  sake,  in  that  dwelling  of  hers,  is  now,  I 
think,  being  made  into  a  robe  for  me. 


Though  she  be  far-away,  and  hidden  from  me 
by  five  hundred  layers  of  white  cloud,  still  shall  I 
turn  my  gaze  each  night  toward  the  dwelling-place 
of  my  younger  sister  [wife) , 

[69] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Aki  sareba 
Kawagiri  tateru 

Amanogawa, 
Kawa  ni  muki-ite 
Kru  yo  zo  oki! 

Hito-tose  ni 
Nanuka  no  yo  nomi 

Au-hito  no  — 
Koi  mo  tsuki-neba 
Sayo  zo  ake  ni  keru! 

Toshi  no  koi 
Koyoi  tsukushite, 

Asu  yori  wa, 
Tsune  no  gotoku  ya 
Waga  koi  oran. 

Hikoboshi  to 
Tanabata-tsume  to 

Koyoi"  aii ;  — 
Ama-no-Kawa  to  ni 
Nami  tatsu-na  yume ! 

[  70  ] 


THE    RIVER    OF    HEAVEN 

When  autumn  comes ,  and  the  river  ~  mists 
spread  over  the  Heavenly  Stream^  I  turn  toward 
the  river  [and  long) ;  and  the  nights  of  my  longing 
are  many  ! 


But  once  in  the  whole  year,  and  only  upon  the 
seventh  night  [of  the  seventh  month),  to  meet  the 
beloved  person  —  and  lo  I  The  day  has  dawned  be- 
fore our  mutual  love  could  express  [or  *' satisfy"^ 
itself! 


The  love-longing  of  one  whole  year  having 
ended  to-night,  every  day  from  to-morrow  I  must  ) 
again  pine  for  him  as  before  ! 


Hikoboshi  and  T anabata-tsume  are  to  meet 
each  other  to-night ;  — ye  waves  of  the  River  of 
Heaven,  take  heed  that  ye  do  not  rise  ! 

[71  ] 


JAPANESE   LYRICS 

Aki-kaze  no 
Fuki  tadayowasu 

Shirakumo  wa, 
Tanabata-tsume  no 
Amatsu  hire  kamo  ? 


Shiba-shiba  mo 
Ai  minu  kimi  wo, 

Amanogawa 
Funa-de  haya  seyo 
Yo  no  fukenu  ma  ni, 


Amanogawa 
Kiri  taphi-watari 

Hikoboshi  no 
Kaji  no  'to  kikoyu 
Yo  no  fuke-yukeba. 

Amanogawa 
Kawa  'to  sayakeshi : 

Hikoboshi  no 
Haya  kogu  fune  no 
Nami  no  sawagi  ka  ? 

[  72] 


THE    RIVER   OF    HEAVEN 

Oh  !  that  white  cloud  driven  by  the  autumn- 
wind —  can  it  be  the  heavenly  hire  ^'^  ofTanabata- 
tsume  ? 


Because  he  is  my  not-often-to-be-met  beloved^ 
hasten  to  row  the  boat  across  the  River  of  Heaven 
ere  the  night  be  advanced. 


Late  in  the  night,  a  mist  spreads  over  the 
River  of  Heaven ;  and  the  sound  of  the  oar  ofHi- 
koboshi  is  heard. 


On  the  River  of  Heaven  a  sound  of  plashing 
can  be  distinctly  heard:  is  it  the  sound  of  the  rip- 
pling made  by  Hikoboshi  quickly  rowing  his  boat  ? 

[  73  ] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Kono  yube, 
Furikuru  ame  wa, 

Hikoboshi  no 
Haya  kogu  fune  no 
Kai  no  chiri  ka  mo. 


Waga  tama-doko  wo 

Asu  yori  wa 

Uchi  harai, 
Kimi  to  inezute 
Hitori  ka  mo  nen  ! 


Kaze  fukite, 
Kawa-nami  tachinu  ; 

Hiki-fune  ni 
Watari  mo  kimase 
Yo  no  fukenu  ma  ni. 

Amanogawa 
Nami  wa  tatsutomo 

Waga  fune  wa 
Iza  kogi  iden 
Yo  no  fukenu  ma  ni. 

[74] 


THE    RIVER    OF    HEAVEN 

Perhaps  this  evening  shower  is  but  the  spray 
{flung  down)  from  the  oar  of  Hikoboshi^  rowing 
his  boat  in  haste. 


From  to-morrow y  alas  !  after  having  put  my 
jewel-bed  in  order ^  no  longer  reposing  with  my  lordy 
I  must  sleep  alone  I 


The  wind  having  risen,  the  waves  of  the  river 
have  become  high;  —  this  night  cross  over  in  a  tow- 
boat  y  I  pray  thee,  before  the  hour  be  late  ! 


Even  though  the  waves  of  the  River  of  Hea- 
ven run  high,  I  must  row  over  quickly,  before  it 
becomes  late  in  the  night. 

[75] 


JAPANESE   LYRICS 

Inishie  ni 
Oriteshi  hata  wo ; 

Kono  yube 
Koromo  ni  nuite  — 
Kimi  matsu  are  wo  ! 


Amanogawa 
Se  wo  hayami  ka  mo  ? 

Nubatama  no 
Yo  wa  fuke  ni  tsutsu, 
Awanu  Hikoboshi ! 


Watashi-mori, 
Fune  haya  watase ; 

Hito-tose  ni 
Futatabi  kayo 
Kimi  naranaku  ni ! 


Aki  kaze  no 
Fukinishi  hi  yori, 

Amanogawa 
Kawase  ni  dedachi ;  — 
Matsu  to  tsuge  koso  ! 

[  76] 


THE    RIVER    OF    HEAVEN 

Long  ago  I  finished  weaving  the  material; 
andy  this  evenings  having  finished  sewing  the  gar- 
ment for  him  —  {why  must)  I  still  wait  for  my 
lord? 


Is  it  that  the  current  of  the  River  of  Heaven 
[has  become  too)  rapid?  The  jet-black  night  ad- 
vances —  and  Hikoboshi  has  not  come  I 


Oh,  ferryman,  make  speed  across  the  stream  ! 
— my  lord  is  not  one  who  can  come  and  go  twice  in 
a  year  I 


On  the  very  day  that  the  autumn-wind  began 
to  blow,  I  set  out  for  the  shallows  of  the  River  of 
Heaven ;  —  /  pray  you,  tell  my  lord  that  I  am 
waiting  here  still! 

[  11  ] 


JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Tanabata  no 
Funanori  surashi,  — 

Maso-kagami, 
Kiyoki  tsuki-yo  ni 
Kumo  tachi-wataru. 


[  78] 


THE    RIVER    OF   HEAVEN    •'■ 

Methinks  Tanabata  must  be  coming  in  her 
boat ;  for  a  cloud  is  even  now  'passing  across  the  clear 
face  of  the  moon. 


[79] 


'•'••  -  •'* '  y-^  - ' ': :  -JAPANESE    LYRICS 

Perhaps  the  legend  of  Tanabata,  as  it  was  understood 
by  those  old  poets  ^  can  make  but  a  faint  appeal  to  West- 
ern minds.  Nevertheless,  in  the  silence  of  transparent 
nights y  before  the  rising  of  the  moon,  the  charm  of  the  an- 
cient tales  sometimes  descends  upon  me,  out  of  the  scintil- 
lant  sky, —  to  make  me  forget  the  monstrous  facts  of  science, 
and  the  stupendous  horror  of  Space.  Then  I  no  longer  be- 
hold the  Milky  Way  as  that  awful  Ring  of  the  Cosmos, 
whose  hundred  million  suns  are  powerless  to  lighten  the 
Abyss,  but  as  the  very  Amanogawa  itself,  —  the  River 
Celestial.  I  see  the  thrill  of  its  shining  stream,  and  the 
mists  that  hover  along  its  verge,  and  the  water-grasses  that 
bend  in  the  winds  of  autumn.  White  Orihime  I  see  at  her 
starry  loom,  and  the  Ox  that  grazes  on  the  farther  shore ; 
—  and  I  know  that  the  falling  dew  is  the  spray  from  the 
Herdsman's  oar.  And  the  heaven  seems  very  near  and 
warm  and  human;  and  the  silence  about  me  is  filled  with 
the  dream  of  a  love  unchanging,  immortal,  — forever 
yearning  and  forever  young,  and  forever  left  unsatisfied 
by  the  paternal  wisdom  of  the  gods. 


THE    END 


NOTES 


NOTES 

1.  A  cloak,  lined  usually  with  brightly  colored  silk. 

2.  Alluding  to  the  Buddhist  proverb  :  "  The  fallen  flower  returns 
not  to  the  branch ;  the  broken  mirror  never  again  reflects." 

3.  That  is  to  say,  the  grace  of  their  motion  makes  one  think  of  the 
grace  of  young  girls. 

4.  A  creature  of  which  weird  things  are  told ;  for  it  is  said  to  be 
a  night  wanderer  from  the  Land  of  Darkness.  It  cries  as  though 
in  pain  the  syllables  "  ho-to-to-gi-su.^^ 

5.  Because  an  obi  or  girdle  of  very  bright  color  can  be  worn  only 
by  children. 

6.  Written  more  than  eleven  hundred  years  ago  on  the  death  of 
the  poet's  little  son. 

7.  Literally :  "  Repeat  prayers  saying,  dead-of-presence-in  twain 
facing,  —  small-pan  cooking  !  "  Konabe-date  is  an  idiomatic  ex- 
pression signifying  a  lovers'  tete-a-tete,  the  idea  suggested  being 
that  of  the  pleasure  experienced  by  an  amorous  couple  in  eating 
out  of  the  same  dish. 

8.  The  Wheel  of  Karma,  the  passage  from  birth  to  birth. 

9.  Deeds  in  a  former  existence. 

10.  A  double  meaning  in  the  third  line  of  the  original  may  be  ren- 
dered by  reading  for  of  Akanuma  —  after  the  time  of  that  happy 
relation, 

11.  The  meaning  intended  may  be  expressed  thus :  "  Being  on  my 
way  to  pay  a  visit,  I  met  with  a  being  lovely  as  a  flower;  and 

[83] 


NOTES 

for  the  sake  of  that  lovejy  person,  I  am  passing  the  day  here. 
.  .  .  Fair  one,  wherefor^  that  dawn-like  blush  before  the  hour 
of  dawn  ?  —  can  it  mean/  that  you  love  me  ?  " 

12.  The  Will-o'-the-Wisp  is  called  fox-fire  because  the  goblin-fox 
was  supposed  to  create  it. 

13.  The  goblin-fox  deceived  men  by  transforming  an  old  horse-bone 
into  the  form  of  a  courtesan. 

14.  One  afflicted  with  ghost-sickness.  It  was  formerly  supposed  that 
the  intense  grief  or  longing  of  a  lover  caused  the  suffering  spirit 
to  create  a  double,  one  body  going  to  join  the  beloved  while  the 
other  remained  at  home. 

15.  This  suggests  the  ghostly  sympathy  said  to  exist  between  a 
mirror  and  the  soul  of  its  possessor. 

16.  A  typical  play  upon  words.  The  toad  was  credited  with  super- 
natural powers  and  the  phrase  kesho-m-mono  may  signify  goblin- 
thing  as  well  as  toilet  article. 

17.  A  mollusk  credited  with  the  power  of  creating  a  mirage  by  ex- 
haling a  vapor  that  to  deluded  mortals  takes  the  form  of  Shin- 
kiro^  the  Elf-land  of  Far  Eastern  fable. 

18.  A  person  whose  neck  lengthens  prodigiously  during  sleep,  so 
that  the  head  can  wander  around  seeking  what  it  may  devour. 
Often  the  head  is  completely  detachable. 

19.  A  woman  may  become  a  Rokuro-Kubi  without  knowing  it. 

20.  A  beautiful  phantom  whose  embrace  is  death. 

21.  The  original  is  capable  of  another  reading  suggesting  that  the 
grace  of  her  form  is  like  that  of  willow  branches  weighed  down 
by  snow. 

22.  The  spirits  of  the  drowned  are  said  to  follow  after  ships  calling 
for  a  dipper.     This    should  be  given,  but  first,  without  the 

[84] 


NOTES 

knowledge  of  the  spirits,  the  bottom  must  be  knocked  out,  other- 
wise they  will  use  it  to  fill  and  sink  the  ship. 

23.  The  Underworld  of  the  Dead. 

24.  A  famous  chieftain  of  the  Heike  clan  lost  in  a  great  sea-fight. 
His  ghost  was  addicted  to  making  off  with  the  anchors  of  ships 
moored  in  his  domain. 

25.  Spirits  of  the  drowned  must  remain  in  the  water  until  they  can 
lure  the  living  to  destruction.  So  his  exclamation  really  means, 
"  now  perchance  I  shall  be  able  to  achieve  salvation  by  drown- 
ing somebody." 

26.  Or  "  the  avenging  ghost." 

27.  A  species  bearing  on  their  upper  shells  wrinklings  resembling  the 
outlines  of  an  angry  face.  They  are  said  to  be  the  transformed 
spirits  of  the  defeated  Heike  warriors. 

28.  A  goblin  who  makes  a  practice  of  shaking  houses.  It  may  also 
mean  the  sound  of  the  shaking  of  a  house  during  an  earthquake. 

29.  A  house-post  must  be  set  with  the  same  end  up  as  when  it  was 
growing.  An  "upside-down  post"  would  groan  in  the  night, 
open  its  cracks  like  mouths  and  its  knots  like  eyes,  and  make 
itself  generally  a  nuisance  until  the  mistake  was  corrected. 

30.  Or,  "  for  what  evil  design  can  this  deed  have  been  done"? 
Takumi  may  signify  either  a  carpenter  or  an  intrigue. 

31.  Literally,  "  upside-down-matter-sorrow,"  contrariety. 

32.  Alluding  to  the  proverb,  "  There  are  ears  in  the  wall,"  sug- 
gesting the  necessity  for  care  even  in  private  conversation. 

33.  That  is,  is  upside-down  —  all  wrong. 

34.  Some  statues  of  Jiz5,  the  Buddhist  savior  of  children's  ghosts, 
are  said  to  walk  at  night  in  various  disguises. 

[  8s  ] 


NOTES 

35.  The  bald  body  and  staring  eyes  of  the  cuttlefish,  bearing  a  dis- 
torted resemblance  to  the  shaven  head  of  a  priest,  suggested  to 
the  Japanese  the  name  Priest  of  the  Sea. 

36.  Japanese  houses  are  protected  against  the  entrance  of  evil  spir- 
its by  charms  written  on  rice  paper  and  pasted  on  the  door. 

37.  Or,  repeating,"  Hail  to  thee,  O  Buddha  Amitabha  !  "  The  idea 
of  counting  is  also  suggested  in  this  alternate  reading  by  the 
fact  that  the  invocation  to  Amitabha  is  usually  accompanied  by 
the  numbering  of  beads  on  a  rosary. 

38.  This  tree,  which  in  its  old  age  is  supposed  to  be  a  favorite  haunt 
of  goblins,  bears  a  heavy  crimson  flower  that  drops  with  an 
audible  thud  often  compared  with  the  sound  of  a  human  head 
falling  under  the  sword. 

39.  The  oil  used  in  Japanese  lamps  was  obtained  from  the  nuts  of 
the  tsubaki. 

40.  The  Milky  Way. 

41.  Lovers,  ere  parting,  were  wont  to  tie  each  other's  inner  girdle 
(himo)  and  pledge  themselves  to  leave  the  knot  untouched  until 
the  time  of  their  next  meeting. 

42.  A  poetical  phrase  signifying  the  use  of  each  other's  arms  as 
pillows. 

43.  Scarf. 


CAMBRIDGE  .  MASSACHUSETTS 
U    .    S    .    A 


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